Enrollment
367
California · 2024-25 NCES data
2024-25 NCES data Elementary school (grades K-5) NCES 063072004909
Sierra Hills Elementary — Meadow Vista, CA
Federal NCES profile for Sierra Hills Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators — Resource Investment Index 16/100.
👥 Class size 18
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 0
How this works: Each indicator above is scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC data, then averaged into the Resource Investment Index. This measures resource allocation — staffing, programs, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes. Full methodology →
School address
District: Placer Hills Union Elementary · California
Public location data per NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) Common Core of Data. Verify the school's current address on the NCES CCD record.
Teachers (FTE)
18.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
20.4:1
vs 21.6:1 California avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
28.1%
vs 55.5% California avg
-49% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Sierra Hills Elementary compares with California and U.S. medians
The federal record — no proprietary index, no editorial formula.
PlainSchools publishes the actual federal measurements — enrollment, staffing, demographics, discipline, and finance — straight from the NCES Common Core of Data, CRDC, and F-33 surveys. No composite rating, no opinion-based score on top. You get the same raw numbers researchers and policymakers use, with benchmarks, spending context, and equity indicators computed from the same federal datasets. Full methodology linked below.
What this school's NCES data tells you
Sierra Hills Elementary reports 367 enrolled students to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) alongside 18.0 full-time-equivalent teachers, producing a 20.4:1 student-teacher ratio. That figure sits 6% below the California state mean of 21.6:1, signalling more teacher attention per pupil than the state benchmark. Against the national 2024-25 average of 15.9:1, it is 28% higher, a useful calibration for families comparing districts across state lines.
Title I and federal lunch eligibility offer another window into the student body: 28.1% of pupils qualify for free meals, a proxy for household income that federal programs use to direct funding. The free-lunch share is 49% below the California average and 46% below the national baseline. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of school days — stands at 47.7% according to the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
On the finance side, the surrounding Placer Hills Union Elementary spends $12,576 per pupil district-wide, below the California average of $18,039 and below the national average of $19,490. Revenue comes 69.7% from local sources (property taxes), 21.7% from the state, and 8.7% from federal programs per the NCES F-33 finance survey. Taken together, these measurements produce a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (F), calculated from 3 distinct NCES and CRDC indicators measuring resource allocation rather than academic outcomes.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Sierra Hills Elementary compares
Cross-validating school-level NCES values against California state and U.S. national means lets readers see whether this school is an outlier or in line with peers.
| Metric | This school | vs California | California avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 20.4:1 | ▼ 6% | 21.6:1 | 15.9:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 28.1% | ▼ 49% | 55.5% | 51.8% |
| Enrollment | 367 | top 35% | — | — |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
What the federal data reveals about equity at this school
Federal measurements — not ratings — surface the resource and opportunity picture. Below are the indicators that researchers, civil-rights monitors, and funding formulas use to assess equity.
Economic need
28.1%
free-lunch eligible
— 49% below the California average of 55.5%
Below the 40% Title I threshold — federal aid targets individual qualifying students rather than schoolwide programs.
Staffing depth
20.4:1
students per teacher
— 6% below state mean
Top 33% in California — lower ratio than 67% of state schools
Above 20:1 — larger class loads than the typical U.S. public school; staffing is stretched relative to enrollment.
Engagement
47.7%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
Chronic absenteeism at or above 20% — the CDC threshold for "high" — signals significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,576
per pupil, district-wide
— below California avg of $18,039
Below the U.S. average per-pupil spend — funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 1 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.5 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
Enrollment 367 Top 35% in California — larger than 65% of 10,006 state schools
Teachers (FTE) 18.0
Students per teacher 20.4:1 -6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible 28.1% -49% vs state
NCES ID 063072004909
Student demographics
White 78.2%
Hispanic or Latino 14.4%
Two or More 5.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.1%
African American 0.5%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.3%
Largest group: White at 78.2% of enrollment.
Programs & staff
Counselors (FTE) 0.0
Discipline & special education
Chronically absent 47.7%
In-school suspensions 1
Out-of-school suspensions 1
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Placer Hills Union Elementary, which includes Sierra Hills Elementary.
$12,576
Per student
-30%
vs California
Avg $18,039
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $19,490
Revenue mix
Local 69.7%
State 21.7%
Federal 8.7%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 388
- Students per teacher
- 19:1
Educator & family resources
In-depth guides on understanding NCES data, school choice, and education funding.
Understanding NCES data
How CCD, CRDC and EDFacts feed every public-school number you see.
Choose a school district
Eight signals that matter more than the overall ranking number.
How schools are funded
Title I, F-33, state aid formulas and what per-pupil spending really means.
Chronic absenteeism
Why missing 10% of school matters and how it varies by district.
Magnet vs charter vs traditional
Three school types, three funding models, three sets of trade-offs.
School discipline data
What CRDC suspension and expulsion records do and don't reveal.
Frequently asked questions about Sierra Hills Elementary
How many students attend Sierra Hills Elementary?
Sierra Hills Elementary has 367 students enrolled. It is a elementary school in Meadow Vista, CA.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Sierra Hills Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Sierra Hills Elementary is 20.4:1, which is 6% lower than the California average of 21.6:1 and 28% higher than the national average of 15.9:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Sierra Hills Elementary?
28.1% of students at Sierra Hills Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the California average of 55.5%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Sierra Hills Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Sierra Hills Elementary is White at 78.2%. The school serves a diverse student body in Meadow Vista, CA.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Sierra Hills Elementary?
Sierra Hills Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 16/100 (F) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. This index measures federal resource allocation — staffing levels, program availability, and support services — not standardized test scores or academic outcomes.